Gibbs and Dandy has a rich history in the building materials trade stretching back about 170 years.
Originally focused in the ironmongery business, the Luton-based company was floated on the stock exchange in 1953 and developed into a generalist merchant.
The chain is now part of Saint-Gobain’s Building Distribution (SGBD) division, another company with a long history – over 350 years.
The 29 branches of Gibbs & Dandy form part of the Local Merchant Group, which also comprises other brands such as Chadwicks, JP Corry, Normans, DHS, Benchmark Building Supplies, Matthew Charlton and Roger W Jones. All in all the Local Merchant Group’s annual turnover is around £400m, with profits outgrowing the market.
Heading up the business is Neil Lawrence, Local Merchant Group managing director. Prior to leading the group he was operations director and sales and operations director on the Jewson main board.
His career in the builders merchant trade spans over 40 years, starting as a yard hand at UBM in London, then moving through various roles in the branches before UBM was acquired by Jewson.
In 2011 he was appointed managing director of Gibbs & Dandy, which in 2013 was renamed The Local Merchant Group to incorporate Saint-Gobain’s non-Jewson merchant brands under one simple banner.
“I have done every job in a branch, except for being a lorry driver and machinist, and rose through the company,” he said. He explained the creation of the Local Merchant Group at Saint-Gobain.
“I decided I wanted to do something different. I wanted to form a local network, taking some of the acquisitions and putting them all together.”
The Group sees a focus on each branch’s tailored offering within its operational area with the different business cultures, systems and geographies and core business practices aligned; underpinning this with the cost and supply chain benefits provided by the larger group.
“We offer a local and specialist approach to our markets; the result has been steady growth for our divergent brands.” Mr Lawrence explained that Gibbs & Dandy had grown slowly until its acquisition by Saint-Gobain Building Distribution in 2008.
Then in 2012, 12 former Build Center branches and a Merton Timber branch in East Dulwich were acquired by SGBD and were integrated into Gibbs & Dandy.
Saint-Gobain didn’t rebadge its merchant acquisition branches as Jewson branches. Sometimes national chains did rebadge acquired companies to the main brand, said Mr Lawrence, but this wasn’t always the answer and he said “you have to guard against arrogance”.
He said it was more than just the name.
“We do not care what you call it – it’s the people. It’s a very people dependent business.”
And, he added, it was important to look at the customer profile of branches to see what was happening with trade.
You’d think there would be some crossover of trade between Jewson and Gibbs & Dandy branches, but the findings often tell a different story.
Mr Lawrence said when he first started working on the project he saw that the local merchant branches had a different customer base from Jewson branches.
Trade flows were analysed to see what was going on with customers.
He used the Gibbs & Dandy branch location in Luton as an example. “Even though we are literally next door the customers do not cross over.”
He estimated the crossover to be as little as 15%.
“There seem to be customers that like dealing with nationals and there are customers that like dealing with local independents.
“I would be nervous about putting people in boxes but we [Local Merchant Group] do pick up a different customer base.”
Jewson, he added, took a lot of transient tradesperson business – people who were working in an area different from their norm and migrated to their familiar brand.
Mr Lawrence said managers at the Gibbs & Dandy branches were typically more empowered than managers at Jewson and other national builders merchant chains.
“The nationals tend to move their managers round a lot more quickly,” he said.
Branch Development
A comprehensive branch development and refurbishment programme his taken place across the network.
“I think the branches we have now are second to none,” said Mr Lawrence. “We have spent good money on the business. The branches we acquired from Build Center had been starved of investment for many years.
“The vast majority of our yards and traffic management are now first class.”
The business has also replaced its lorry fleet.
Projects have included a £450,000 refurbishment at the flagship Luton branch, which now has dedicated specialist areas for decorating, plumbing, heating, tools, ironmongery and electrical products.
There is also a new-look bathroom showroom and a “sustainable house” offering eco-friendly products.
Meanwhile, a new branch in Stevenage opened in 2017 and features an undercover timber warehouse to ensure timber stays dry.
The Leicester branch’s shop has been expanded while Bedford now features a much stronger timber drive-through and bathroom showroom.
Gibbs & Dandy Gillingham has been the subject of a £9,000 investment with feng shui used to make the product range more eye-catching for customers.
The Gillingham branch has increased product interest by upping its floor space and letting extra light into the room so that customers can touch and feel the products before buying them.
There is also clear visibility into the merchant’s yard, which makes goods easier to identify and ultimately helps to provide better customer service.
The Doncaster timber specialist branch has had a replacement roof, while its shop has also been redecorated with a new ceiling, floor and doors, as well as the stock being revamped with new merchandising.
Timber Heritage
It’s not surprising that some Gibbs & Dandy and other Local Merchant Group branches have a strong timber heritage.
These six branches, which record some of the highest returns in the group network, are more focused on their customer segments that use timber.
Turning such specialists into general merchants, Mr Lawrence added, was not always a good thing to do.
“If a generalist builders merchant manager goes into [those type of businesses] they put what they know in, such as adding bricks and blocks. But people go in there for timber.
“We identified a number of branches – such as the old Nixon Knowles branches – which are timber specialists. People had tried to turn them into general merchants but we have kept them as timber branches.”
These timber branches feature very little heavyside. “They have a much wider range of timber products,” said Mr Lawrence. The Gibbs & Dandy Hereford site is also a very strong hardwood specialist. Four staff members there have clocked up almost 130 years of collective loyal service. Peter Sanders has worked at the branch for 40 years, closely followed by branch manager Richard Flower with 34 years and Tracee Flower, with a matching 34 years. Recently promoted assistant branch manager Richard Daniels has 21 years’ service.
The Doncaster branch offers timber construction products including JJI-Joists and roof trusses. Many branches tap into Saint-Gobain group company Pasquill’s expertise in terms of roof trusses and other timber construction products.
“Chadwicks is a fantastic timber-based business with a strong lightside business including decorating materials, ironmongery and kitchens,” added Mr Lawrence.
In terms of timber supply, Gibbs & Dandy has a choice whether to use Saint-Gobain’s internal timber sourcing business or compete for business.
“We have found that we have done really well working with Pasquill on roof trusses,” said Mr Lawrence. “I definitely think engineered timber is an area of growth and it offers flexibility in terms of timber availability.”
Gibbs & Dandy also plans to extend its reach on kitchens. “We try to pass cost inflation on but timber is different because it’s a commodity. We have not had a particular problem in landing price increases – 2017 was very successful but can be difficult with timber.”
Mr Lawrence said 2018 would be a bit tougher to secure price increases.
Relevance
“My mantra has been for merchants to remain relevant. Part of that is making sure we go far down the value chain to help our customers, to take the costs out of the supply chain or offering services to them.
“If you talk to a lot of merchants they say they have good relations with customers, so why do their customers use Screwfix?” One of the ways the Group’s branches can add value is via Saint-Gobain’s Build Aviator programme, which offers a range of services and support at each stage of the build process, from product specifications, to assisting with a smooth process through building control sign off.
Elsewhere, Mr Lawrence said political acceptance of the importance of construction was a huge step forward; the problem was now just how to build those 250,000 homes.
And effective non-academic training programmes covering the old-fashioned trades was sorely needed.
He remembers giving former prime minister David Cameron a grilling when he visited a branch in 2010. “He asked ‘how is business?’. I told him how many people had been lost from the trade and that if we were a car plant he would be all over us.”
